The transition marks the 30-year anniversary of the Gannett-owned paper which launched in September 1982.

While we're fans of the simple design (it reminds us of scrolling through an app on the iPad), it took a year for the team to complete the redesign – or reimagination, as USA Today coins it.

Gannett's Chief Digital Officer David Payne has overseen the site redesign from the beginning. He shared some early concept designs of the restructure showing exactly how the site transitioned into the 21st century.

Payne said the redesign focused on three big ideas. "Give people what they want when they request a story, separate advertising from content, [and] create a horizontal navigation experience."

Though you can still access the old site at the moment, the full launch of the Beta will take place September 29th.

Until then, enjoy the old site (or continue scouring the Beta site) and take a look at how the site could have looked.

Here's the old USA Today website. The last major overhaul to the site was in March 2007. The plan was to make USA Today stand out from other US news sites while delivering an item to help readers scan news items more effectively.

Courtesy of USA Today

Here's what the Beta site looks like now. This final design was a year in the making.

The site soon took on the feel of the current Beta page. This homepage didn't provide an easy way to read multiple news headlines.

Courtesy of USA Today

The problem with this and other early concepts was being able to quickly find the bulk of the news with a quick eye scan.

Courtesy of USA Today

Payne said this nearly final version speaks to that point perfectly. "By interjecting images, wrapping headlines, adding the "read story," and using a grey background, we reduced the ability of the eye to quickly process the headlines."

Courtesy of USA Today

Again, here is the finished result, what Payne calls the "best blend of functionality, scan-ability and bold use of imagery and live feeds."